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We chose our vacation and we're going to....
VEGAS, baby!!! Woooo!!!!!!!!!
We're still interested in San Antonio, but It came down to money. We got a ridiculous Vegas deal through Priceline, which was kind of scary. Priceline will give you a better rate if you let them choose your flights for you. These flights are said to be within a 4 hour block of time and are likely to have connections and layovers, but the website boasts 80% of them are less than a few hours (2 hours... if I'm not mistaken). So it was a gamble (...haha... no pun intended).
Turns out we got very decent *DIRECT* flights. We're booked for five days at the MGM grand.
SO, this will be DH and my first trip to Vegas. Load me up with suggestions: Where should we eat? What's a must-do in Vegas? Any tourist traps (or tips) We should know about?
Re: We chose our vacation and we're going to....
That's awesome!
So were your times wonky? Or did they work out ok? I have quite a few plane tickets to book in the incoming months, and I've never used priceline, so I'm a bit nervous. Can you walk me through how you booked your flights like I'm a two year old? Haha.
MY BLOG!
Sure thing. Keep in mind that we didn't do the "Name your Price" gimmick that they have, where you can suggest the price you want to pay for a particular flight. I'm pretty sure you can't choose times on those either.
1) I did the "vacation search" from Chicago to Las Vegas on the days I wanted.
2) We selected the hotel we wanted.
3) We had the opportunity to select a specific flight, but that option would have cost (in my case) at least $75 more per person. Instead, I let them choose, and by the flight itinerary, it says "Departs: Any time between 6am - 10pm."
>>>Note.... because I'm a dumbass, I just now realized that it said departures 6am -10PM. I thought it was departures between 6am and 10AM. I can almost feel Jesus patting me on the head saying, "It's okay, Karen, I know how you are. I got your back on this one."
Woops.
4) We booked like any other travel site, and were sent our itinerary via e-mail. (And yes, one of the times is outside of the 6am-10AM window I thought we were working with. *facepalm* But since it works for us, we didn't really care!) The times were very reasonable. Nothing too early, nothing too late.
Bottom line: If you're traveling for something specific where times are important, don't use Priceline.
Eat: The breakfast buffet at the Wynn, the World's Buffet at the Rio, Craftsteak at the MGM Grand (Tom Colicchio's restaurant), Mesa Grill at Caesar's Palace (Bobby Flay's restaurant), The Peppermill on the strip (best bloody mary's in all of Vegas).
Must do: Fountains at the Bellagio, Forum Shops at Caesar's Palace, A Cirque du Soleil show, Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay, the Eiffel Tower at Paris, Rollercoaster at New York, New York, Walk through the Wynn and/or the Encore... there is so much to do in Vegas without gambling or with gambling- whatever you prefer!
Watch out for: The cabbies... ask how much it is to get from point A to point B before getting in the cab. Beware of the guys handing out X-rated flyers on the strip (they are basically advertising prostitutes).
Whooo! Awesome choice- SO exciting!! And yay to your great deal
It's been a while since we've gone, but we stayed at MGM Grand when we went and we LOVED it. They have an awesome pool (lazy river, waterfalls, whirlpools, multiple bars), so if you have any downtime, I would highly recommend that (I saw your post the other day about pool-hopping, and I really don't think you'll need to try!) We didn't discover it until the last day and were kicking ourselves.
But ditto ditto DITTO to everything Nicole said! Especially seeing a Cirque show, the Bellagio fountains, and the Shops at Caesars- they also put on a show every hour, which is cool to see. And there's even a Fat Tuesdays there, so you can grab a super size margarita while you wander through shops full of things you could never afford
(Well, not YOU personally, just anyone in an average financial situation)
If you're a thrill seeker, there are a few amusement rides at the top of the Stratosphere, which were a lot of fun. Even if you don't go on the rides, it has amazing views of the city. (Otherwise, that hotel is kind of old and run-down).
I also heard (from a trusted foodie friend) that the dinner buffet at Wynn is amazing too- a little pricier than the others, I think $40pp- but it has filet, crab legs, and creme brulee...
And when we were there, there was a monorail that got you around super easily. We bought one-day passes each day and it runs up and down the strip- there's even a stop at the MGM, which was awesome.
Have fun!!
I also agree with with the others. The fountains are amazing. We also went up in the Effiel Tower during the day and you have a direct view over the fountains and it's amazing. We also went up in the Stratusphere in the night and it was really beautiful. However the Stratusphere is at the far north end of the Strip and it's basically the only thing up there so it's a little sketchy looking but we had no trouble.
We didn't love Shark Reef but my sister really wanted to go in there. It was pretty cool but not awesome.
The botanical gardens in the Bellagio are really, really pretty and free. And there is a bakery/gellato shop kind of behind them. It's worth it to go in there just to look at the huge chocolate fountain if nothing else.
Chriss Angels show is pretty weird and would not recommend it but KA which is in the MGM is freaking fantastic. I would see it again if I went back. The only buffet we hit was Mandalay Bay and it was amazing. We only really went there because we did go to Shark Reef and my mom dropped a buck in the slots and won like 200.00 lol.
Freemont Street is neat to see in the night. You can get there and back on the Duece bus. By a day pass on the Duece, it'll be a life saver. And don't try and do all the strip at once. It's very deceving.
Sometimes people come up to you on the Strip and try and convince you to come to clubs or take helicopter tours, and the porn card guys (as I call them) are annoying but pretty used to be brushed off. As long as you don't take anything they are handing out they are pretty good.
Oh and at Madame Tussauds in the Venetian you can actually touch the figures. That's where my nest profile pic came from. And be sure to check out the Canals at the Venetian to, so beautiful!
Phew...
Yay for Vegas!!!
I love Madame Tussaud's in the Venetian. I've been twice and would definitely go again if I found myself back in Vegas. I love that you can take pictures with the people there. I have a few with myself and Hef, Ben Affleck, Johnny Depp
Like everyone else you definitely need to take in the Bellagio fountains. They're awesome in the day and at night so plan to go twice. Make sure you go into the Bellagio and check out the Chihuly glass installation at the check in desk: beautiful! Definitely go into the Wynn and walk around although I remember getting lost trying to get out. If you want to gamble, but aren't interested in paying high table prices, I would recommend checking out the Casino Royale on the strip. The last time I was there the craps tables were only $2 and they have strawberry daquiris for only $1. I like the gardens at the Flamingo and the Shoppes at Caesars are fun to look at.
Have a great trip!
M&M world rocks, and a personal fave (though $$$) for dinner is Canaletto in the Venetian (I'm biased- it's where we ate after we got married!).
NYNY is fun to cruise around- the arcade is fun. and Diablo's (on the strip) has kick ass maragritas! Don't forget Death Cab for Cutie's "Little Bribes" on you Ipod, and your trip will be awesome!
Haha, no problem!
Does anyone recommend (or not recommend) getting a bus pass?
Also, how long is the strip? How long would it take to walk from one end to the other?
Were the places featured ueber expensive? Or were there some reasonably priced things, too?
I have never taken the bus while in Vegas but the strip is so congested I would imagine it would take a long time. That is generally why I ask cab drivers to not use the strip if possible when I take a cab.
The strip is really, really long. To walk from one end to the other would take a couple of hours. It's definitely over 3 miles from one end to the other and the casinos are all set back from the strip a ways.